Coin-controlled race game.



No. 663,l59. Patented Dec. 4, i900.

J. DUNDON.

COIN CONTROLLED. RACE GA ME.

(Application filed Aug. 31, 1899.)

3 Sheets-Sheet (No Modal.)

No. 663,l59. Patentd mm. 4, I900.

- J. uuunon.

COIN CONTROL LED RACE GAME.

(Application filed Aug. 31. 1899.)

3 Shanks-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

\ lrweniar .AW aw M I No. 663,|59. Patnted Dec. 4, I900.

J. puunou. com CONTROLLED RACE GAME.

(Applicatio'n fl 1ed Aug. 81, 1899.)

3 SheetsSheet 3.

(No Model.)

' NITED STATES PATENT Fries...

COIN-CONTROLLED RACE GAME.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 663,159, dated December4, 1900. Application filed August 31, I899. Serial No. 729,067. (Nomodel.)

T0 at whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN DUNDON, a sub ject of the Queen of GreatBritain, residing at 11 Glenview Terrace, Ballyhooly road, Cork,

Ireland, have invented new and useful Improvementsin or Connected withRace Games and Coin-Freed Mechanism for Use in Connection Therewith, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a race-game wherein the competing figures aremounted on endless belts or chains carried upon a series of pulleys orwheels adapted to be independently operated by two or more personsplaying thegame, means being provided whereby the competing figures willbe allowed to goa limited number of laps or rounds for a coin of givenvalue.

In carrying out my invention I mount the pulleys or wheels carrying thebelts or chains on shafts provided with handles whereby they can beoperated, and I provide a plate or catch extending across the"race-table at a right angle to the said belts or chains and beneath theupper portions thereof. The plate is heavier at one side of its pivotthan at the other, so that normally one edge engages with projections onthe belts and prevents them being moved. In order to disengage the platefrom the belts I provide a lever connected at one end to the plate orcatch, the free end of the lever being provided with the receptacle orcage for the reception of a coin. By placing a coin in the receptacle orcage the lever will be moved and disengage the plate or catch from thebelts or chains. To dislodge the coin from the receptacle or cage Ipro-- vide a shaft having a crank or eccentric. This shaft is providedwith pulley or chain wheels connected to it by ratchet mechanism andengaging the belts or chains hereinbefore described. The crank oreccentric operates a driving-catch which engages a toothed Wheel, thelatter being provided with a pivoted arm which as the toothed wheelrevolves comes into contact with a lever on the moneycage, which armdislodges the coin from the said cage and allows the cage-lever to movethe plate or catch, hereinbefore described, into the path of theprojections on the belts or chains.

In some cases I pivot the coin-receptacle so that when moved by theweight of a coin it will, by coming into contact with an obstacle,discharge the coin. As this arrangement, however, would allow of thepremature return of the cage to its normal position, I provide thecage-lever at its free end with a jointed leg which when the lever ismoved by the coin will assume a vertical position and support thecage-lever until moved away by a projection on a belt or chain moved byone of the operators.

To enable my invention to be fully understood, I will describe how itcan be carried into practice by reference to the accompany ing drawings,in which- Figure l is a longitudinal section of racegame apparatusconstructed according to my invention and designed for use by fourplayers. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section of part of the same. Fig. 3 is asection on the line 3 3, Fig. 1, drawn to a larger scale. Fig. 4 is asection on the line 4 4:, Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a view of the coin-cage andthe means for dislodging the coin therefrom, also drawn to an enlargedscale. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section of my modified form of apparatusand designed for use by two players. Fig. 7 is a section on the line 77, Fig. 6, drawn to a larger scale. Fig. 8 is a view drawn to anenlarged scale, illustrating the su p porting-le ver for the coin-cagelever.

Similar reference-letters indicate corresponding parts throughout thedrawings.

a is the case of the apparatus, and b b are the belts or chains carryingthe competing figures c c, which chains pass around wheels (1 d,operated by the handles 6 6 through the medium of the shafts f f. Thereare as many of the shafts ff as there are competing figures, andconsequently a like number of chains. In the construction shown in thedrawings there are four of the shafts ff, each of which is provided withthree loose sprockets and one fixed sprocket-wheel, the fixedsprocket-wheel of each shaft being situated opposite to a loose sprocket.on one of the shafts at the other end of the case a. It will be readilyseen that each competing figure will be operated separately from theothers by means of the handles above referred to.

g is the pivoted plate or catch extending across the race-table at aright angle to the operators, as will be obvious.

belts or chains 1) b and weighted at one end,

as at g, so that the other end can engage with projectionsb on each ofthe belts.

h is-the lever carrying at one end the coinit will disengage .the saidplate or catch from the projections 12 on the belts b. The belts are nowfree to be moved by the handles (2 e.

In order that the competing figures shall only be moved a certain numberof laps for each competition, I provide for keeping the lever h in thedotted position, and consequently the plate or catch 9 out of engagementwith the projections b,until the last lap is being performed. This iseffected in the arrangement shown in Figs. lto 5 by retaining the coinin the receptacle h until this time, so as to hold the parts inposition. For dislodging the coin during the last lap the shaft 2' isprovided, having pulley or chain wheels y'j, with which engage the beltsor chains 1) Z), each of the said pulleys or chain-wheels being mountedloosely on shaftiand provided with a pawlj, engaging with aratchet-wheelj on the shaft 1', as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. This ratchetmechanism, while allowing the positive movement of the shaft & by anyone of the wheelsj, yet allows of their independent movement due to thedifferent speeds at which the belts or chains may be actuated by the Itwill thus be seen that the shaftt' will always be driven by the mostrapidly-moving wheel is is the eccentric (or crank) on the shaft 7), andl the driving-catch operated thereby and engaging the toothed wheel m.

' n is the pivoted arm on the wheelm, which is weighted to cause it tonormally assumea vertical position and during the last lap comes intocontact with one end of the lever 0, pivoted on the coin-receptacle,(the other end of which projects within the receptacle behind the coin,as indicated in Fig. 5,) and moves it so as to dislodge the coin fromthe said receptacle into the drawer p, the lever h and plate 9 thenreturning to their normal positions under the influence of the weight 9.By having the arm n pivoted it assumes a more or less angular positionwhen operating the lever 0, due to the resistance of the latter, andwhen the coin is dislodged the arm again assumes a perpendicularposition to the left of the lever 0, so that the next time thecoinreceptacle descends with a coin the arm n cannot come into contactwith the said lever until the wheel on has made nearly anotherrevolution.

7, and 8' the coin-receptacle h, which is in the form of a platform forthe coin to lie on, is pivoted to the lever 72., so that as it descendsunder the weight of the coin an angular projection g on its under sideimpinging against a pin r causes the receptacle h to turn on its pivotand discharge the coin down a chute 8' into the drawer p. t is the legwhich I joint to the free end of the lever 71, which leg when the leveris moved by the coin assumes a vertical position due to its weight, asshown by the dotted lines in Fig. 6, and supports the the lever h on aplatformu until moved away by a pro ection '22, Fig. 8, on a belt orchain to, running on pulleys or' chain-wheels w. The belt or chain w isactuated from one of the shaftsfthrough the medium of pulleys or wheelsas yand belt or chain .2.

b is a detent or catch against which the projections b will impinge andbe stopped if the belts or chains be moved backward.

In order to avoid damage to the parts when the projections b on thebelts or chains 17 come against the plate or catch g, I arrange theconnection between the operating-handles e e to be a frictional one, sothat the handles can be moved, although the belts or chains are heldstationary. This I effect by arranging the said handles free on theshaftsffand providing them with springs e, Fig. 2, which bear againstdisks e fixed to the said shafts. The pressure of the springs can beadjusted by nuts 3 screwing on the shafts f.

Although I have shown the plate or catch 9 arranged to engage with thebelts or chains carrying the competing figures, it will be obvious thatI can arrange it to engage with parts in operative connection with thesaid belts or chains.

' Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of mysaid invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declarethat what I claim is- 1. In apparatus for playing a race game thecombination of endless belts or chains, figures carried thereby, pulleysor wheels carrying the belts or chains, means for enabling two ormorepersons to impart independent movement to the belts or chains, means fornormally locking the belts or chains against movement in one directionand coin-freed mechanism for disengaging the said locking means,substantially'as described.

2. In apparatus for playing a race game the combination of endless beltsor chains, figures carried thereby, pulleys or wheels carrying the beltsor chains, means for enabling two or more persons to impart independentmovement to the belts or chains, a weighted plate or catch for normallylocking the belts or chains against movement in one direction andcoin-freed mechanism for removing the plate or catch from the belts orchains, substantially as described. m is a detent-pawl for preventingany 3. In apparatus for playing a race game the combination of endlessbelts or chains, figures carried thereby, pulleys or wheels carrying thebelts or chains, means for enabling two or more persons to impartindependent movement to the belts or chains, a weighted plate or catchfor normally locking the belts or chains against movement in onedirection, a lever, connected to the plate or catch and acoin-receptacle carried by the said lever, substantially as described.

4. In apparatus for playing a race game the combination of endless beltsor chains, figures carried thereby, pulleys or Wheels carrying the beltsor chains, means for enabling two or more persons to impart independentmovement to the belts or chains, means for normally locking the belts orchains against movement in one direction, a lever connected to the plateor catch, a coin-receptacle carried by the said lever and means wherebythe belts or chains are not locked till the said figures have gone apredetermined number of laps, substantially as described.

5. In apparatus for playing a race game, the combination of endlessbelts or chains, figures carried thereby, pulleys or wheels carrying thebelts or chains, means for enabling two or more persons to impartindependent movement to the belts or chains, a plate or catch fornormally locking the belts or chains against movement in one direction,a lever connected to the plate or catch, a coin-receptacle carried bythe said lever, additional pulleys or chain-wheels engaging the belts orchains, a shaft carrying them, ratchet mechanism for operating the shaftfrom the said pulleys or wheels, an eccentric or crank, a driving-catchoperated by the eccentric or crank, a toothed wheel operated by thedriving-catch, a weighted arm on the toothed wheel and a lever on thecoin-receptacle for discharging the coin, substantially as described.

6. In apparatus for playinga race game, the combination of endless beltsor chains, figures carried thereby, pulleys or wheels carrying the beltsor chains, means for enabling two or more persons to impart independentmovement to the belts or chains, means for normally locking the belts orchains against movement in one direction, a lever connected to the plateor catch, a coin-receptacle pivoted to the said lever, a pin againstwhich the receptacle impinges and is tipped to discharge the coin, a legat one end of the lever and a traveling belt or chain having aprojection thereon operated from one of the handles, substantially asdescribed.

JOHN DUNDON.

Witnesses:

JAMES OOoNNoR, EDMUND SYNAN.

